Introducing Chris Honeysett, artist - and when money's particularly tight - private investigator Art thieves should be shot. Which is why Chris Honeysett, painter, gourmet cook and private eye to the people of Bath, very nearly didn't take the case. After all, the police have much better resources for tracking stolen works of art. Only his classic Citroen is due for an MOT, the outbuildings at Mill House; his home and studio, are falling down and the price of sea bass is going up relentlessly. So he can't really turn down the job. And talking of which, something about the stolen paintings does smell decidedly fishy...But when an old friend, seemingly unconnected to the art thefts, is found brutally murdered and he finds himself high on a short list of suspects, Chris is more than a little distracted as he sets out to find the killer. Soon, with a second body in the mortuary and CID breathing down his neck, he finds that when dealing with professional criminals taking your eye off the ball for even a second can have fatal consequences. Murder appears all the more stark when set against the genteel facade of the Georgian city of Bath, where the streets appear dazzlingly clean and where unsuspecting tourists are enjoying an exceptionally steamy summer. But Chris Honeysett knows from bitter experience that there is more bubbling under the surface of his city than just hot sulphurous springs...